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(No Model.)

G. P. BENT, M. H. MOGHESNEY & J. GFKUNZE.

PIANO.

Patented Mar. 5, 1895.

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2 222 2? Jfari hesney UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE P. BENT, MARTIN I l. MCOHESNEY, AND JOSEPH G. KUNZE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS; SAID MOOI-IESNEY AND KUNZE ASSIGNORS TO SAID BENT.

PIANO.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 535,190, dated March 5, I 895.

Application filed January 5, 1895, Serial No. 533,968. (No model.)

T0 on whom it may concern;

Be it known that we, GEORGE P. BENT, MAR- TIN H. McOHEsNEY, and JosErH G. KUNZE, citizens of the United States, residing at Ohicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pianos, which are fully set forth in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a vertical, transverse, sectional view of a portion of the soundingboard and other parts of our piano. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a portion of a hammer-arrest and hammers, with a portion of two of the hammers cut away, the hammer-arrest being shown in position to admit of the hammers striking the piano strings. Fig. 3 is a top or plan view of the same, as shown in Fig. 2, with the hammer-arrest adjusted so as to prevent the hammers from striking the piano strings. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of a portion of the adjustable tongue-bar, showing two tongues depending therefrom; and Fig. 5 is a transverse, sectional view of said tonguebar, showing an edge view of one of the tongues depending therefrom.

Our invention consists in improvements on the piano shown and described in Letters Patent No. 527,533, issued October 16, 189%, to George P. Bent, assignee of Martin H. Mc- Ohesney and Joseph G. Kunze. lVe found that, where the tongues depending from an adjustable tongue-bar and carrying on their faces next to the strings metallic strikers were interposed between the hammer and the strings, the contact of the metal or hard strikers with the metal strings produced uniformly a metallic sound, and therefore would not produce sufficient variation in tone. We also found that if the hard or metallic strikers attached to the lower end of the depending tongues were surrounded by the flexible leather of which the tongues are composed, as in the pending application of McOhesney and Kunze, Serial No. 526,633, it produced when contacting with the strings of the piano, a very different tone from metal contacting with metal, but it would not produce such a variety of tones as we are able to produce by our improvement consisting of placing between the tongues depending from the adjustable tongue-bar and the piano strings a secondary adjustable bar having depending from it a flexible non-resonant strip either continuous or in the form of tongues, which can be interposed between the tongue-bar carrying the metal striker on the face next to the strings and the strings,whereby we are enabled to produce either the metallic sound of metal coming in contact with metal or the modified sound of having the metal or hard strikers on the face of the tongues next to the strings contact with the flexible piece interposed between it and the string, thereby enabling us to produce a greater variety of tones than can be produced by either of the other instruments. \Ve also found that in the use of the flexible tongues heretofore shown and described in the above named patent and the application herein referred to, there was a tendency of the tongue to bend and admitof the contact point of the tongue with the string sliding on the string, and especially if not struck by the hammerin a certain position it was liable to produce an unpleasant tone. To obviate this objection we have placed upon one side of the upper portion of the tongue a stiff strip of wood or other like stiff material, so attached as to admit of the tongue swinging from the point of its contact with the tongue-bar, but being left flexible only a short distance below the stiffening piece attached to the tongue. This secures a more definite and positive contact of the striker with the piano string.

o have also made an improvement in the hammer-arrest which consists of providing one side of the hammer-arrest with projections, the faces of which projections we cover witha flexible material. These projections are so arranged that one of them can be brought in frontof the stem of each hammer when it is desired to arrest the hammer from making its full stroke. By sliding the hammer arrest laterally, the stems of the hammers pass between these projections and the hammer is allowed to make its fullstroke and strike the string.

In the accompanying drawings, A represents the sounding-board of an upright piano; B, the strings attached thereto; 0, one of the hammers; D, the hammer-arrest; E,the stem of the hammers; F, the adjustable tonguebar; G, the flexible tongue attached to the tongue-bar; H, the stiffening strip attached to one side of the flexible tongue; I, the hard striker secured to the face of the tongue next to the strings; J, an adjustable bar carrying the flexible strips or tongues, K, which are capable of being interposed between the tongues and the strings of the piano, as shown in Fig. 1.

The adjustable tongue-barb is made adjustable entirely separate from the adjustable bar J, and the tongues depending from the bar F can be raised and the flexible tongues or strips K can be interposed between the hammers and the strings, or these adjustable bars can be so adjusted that the tongues carryingthe strikers can be alone interposed between the hammers and the strings.

L, is a hammer-arrest having upon one side projections, M. \Ve place upon the face of the projections M next to the hammer stems, flexible pieces, N. The hammer arrest is placed in suitable guide-ways to be moved laterally at the will of the operator by suitable well-known devices so that the stems of the hammers will not strike the projections on the hammer-arrest, but will pass between them as shown in Fig. 2 when the hammers will be left free to make a full stroke. This we consider a cheap and simple way of making the hammer-arrest.

The parts of the piano not shown in the drawings hereto annexed are made in the usual manner, or as described in the patent above specified.

Having fully described the construction and operation otour invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a piano in combination with the strings, the hammers and mechanisms for operating them; a series of tongues having hard strikers or contacts on their faces next to the strings, said tongues being suspended from an adjustable tongue-bar; and a flexible strip or secondary series of tongues adapted to be interposed between the tongues carrying the hard strikers and the strings, to modify the tones of the strikers as desired.

2. In a piano in combination with the strings and the hammers of the piano, an adjustable tongue-bar carrying a series of flexible tongues and a non-flexible strip secured to the flexible tongues to stiffen it part of its length, as specified and shown.

3. In a piano, the piano strings; the hammers operated in the usual manner; a hammer-arrest provided with projections on one side thereof, said hammer-arrest beinginterposed contiguous to the hammers or hammer stems and made adjustable, whereby the projections on one side of the hammer-arrest cause the hammer to make only a partial stroke, substantially as specified.

GEO. P. BENT. MARTIN H. MOCHESNEY. JOSEPH G. KUNZE. Witnesses:

ALOYSIA HELMIoH, ALLAN A. MURRAY. 

